Middle East

Many Palestinians living under Israeli occupation suffer from a “coercive environment” where settlement expansion has made people’s lives so unbearable that they feel pressured to move, according to James Heenan, head of the UN human rights office in the Occupied Palestinian Territory. Mr. heenan spoke with Reem Abaza of UN News in Jerusalem, explaining the challenges Palestinians routinely face, in the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and the Gaza Strip.

Recurring cycles of violence in the Middle East highlight the need for international efforts to prevent hostilities, provide humanitarian aid and support Palestinian reconciliation, the UN’s political chief told the Security Council on Wednesday.

Promoting the rights of women in the Occupied Palestinian Territory “is not going to be easy” but the political will is there to bring about change, a leading UN-appointed expert said on Monday. It marks the first time that the Palestinian Authority, which administers much of the occupied West Bank, has worked directly with the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW). CEDAW member Nahla Haidar talked to UN News.

Describing a viable two-state solution to peace in the Middle East as “very much in doubt”, a leading Palestinian legislator called on Wednesday for “new international engagement” to move the process forward.